Swear on Sunshine
by moonswirl
Summary: Gleekathon, day three hundred and twenty-five: Rachel does it for her, even if she knows it'll hurt, she deserves to know.


_Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 15th cycle. Now cycle 16!_

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**"Swear on Sunshine"  
Rachel & Quinn  
Sunshine Girls #16 [Sequel to "Sunny in Shards"] **

She knew that hearing what she had to say would not be easy for Quinn, but she had to know. She had been trying to figure out how to go about it, and the conclusion was this: have proof at the ready.

After a few failed stake-outs of Tattoo Girl's stand, Rachel had finally spotted Mr. Fabray back for another visit. Part of her would have been glad to continue failing; success in this case would lead to nothing but heartbreak. Still, there she was, there they were… and there was her camera, usually reserved for her videos to MySpace, now tasked on capturing Mr. Fabray in the act.

Once she had her proof, she had invited Quinn over. She'd made sure it would be at a time when her fathers were away; she preferred that they wouldn't be there, so they could talk in peace… Rage in peace… They had made it to a place where they could call one another, decide to hang out, for whatever reason. In this case, Rachel had remained vague though; she didn't want to lie.

Quinn arrived shortly after Pop and Dad had left. "So… What's going on?" she asked, once Rachel had shut the door. The brunette hesitated before turning.

"I've got something to show you, upstairs." Quinn looked at her, confused by the serious face. Rachel led her to her room, and they sat in front of the computer. Her hand hovered over the mouse, but then she pulled back, looking to Quinn. "This is hard," she sighed.

"It's a mouse," Quinn's brow furrowed, chuckling lightly.

"No, that's not what I…" she paused. "H-how… How are your parents?" Again, Quinn was lost.

"They're fine… same as usual," she shrugged. Rachel didn't look convinced. "What's this about?"

"We've seen what lying's done and can do to us. I'm not going to keep things from you if you should know about them, right?"

"Uh… right," Quinn agreed slowly. "I still don't get what you…"

"I saw your father at the mall, that day we were there and I helped you find clothes?" Quinn nodded, acknowledging she remembered the day. Rachel hesitated before carrying on, feeling her throat so very dry. "You know that stand with the tattooed girl, across from the store?" Quinn chuckled and nodded. The cheery look on her face fell away, little by little as she saw Rachel remained serious.

"Rachel?" she asked. She sighed, still looking at Quinn.

"They were… together," she tried to emphasize while being discreet. Quinn looked back at her, turning this over in her head. At first she just sat there, slightly frozen. Then she blinked, had the slightest of shrugs that looked like a shiver. In the end, she just shook her head, resigned against it.

"No… no, you probably saw it wrong," Quinn got up, inching closer to the door. Rachel looked back to the computer… no choice now.

"Quinn," she called, clicking for the video to start. The blonde stopped, and Rachel could tell she was bracing herself for what she'd seen when she'd turn around. Hearing laughter on the video though, she had to look. Rachel didn't know where to look; she could see how the reality was crushing her, and staring just didn't seem right. "I'm sorry, I didn't know how else to prove it to you…" Quinn's eyes were filled up with tears, and she turned, now heading into the hall. "Wait…" Rachel went after her. She made it to the top of the stairs just as Quinn was making her way down. "Hang on," she begged. Quinn stopped, taking to the ramp and sitting on the steps.

"You know, the crazy thing is I'm almost… not surprised," she spoke, her voice showing some of the tears had made their escape between Rachel's room and the stairs. Rachel came down to sit next to her.

"What are you going to do?"

"I really don't know," Quinn admitted. "What am I supposed to do?" Rachel wondered if she should put her arm around Quinn's shoulders, try to comfort her, or if their budding little thing of a friendship wasn't quite there yet. She managed a hand on the shoulder at her side.

"Whatever you decide, if you need help…" she swore. Quinn looked back at her, wiping at her eyes.

"Thanks," she managed a smile. They were silent for a moment. "Tattoo Girl, seriously?" Quinn scowled. Rachel chuckled, the mood lighter for an instant. It became harder again, when Quinn remembered… "Oh, Mom," she breathed out.

"We'll make it right," Rachel nodded.

"Yes, we will."

THE END

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**_[A/N: This is a one-shot ficlet, story alert won't get you anything! ;)]_**


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